I. Field of the Invention
The instant invention relates to umbrellas and outdoor canopies in combination with fans. Particularly, the present invention relates to umbrellas and outdoor canopies in combination with fans that are combined in a single unit to provide relief from the sun and to provide a cooling air flow to one setting beneath the umbrella or canopy. More particularly, the present invention relates to an umbrella that has a canopy consisting of segmented petals that are rotated about a shaft producing a cooling air flow. More particularly, the present invention relates to an umbrella wherein the canopy is comprised of segmented petals that are driven by a motor that rotates a shaft that is connected to the segmented petals and rotates these segmented petals producing a cooling air flow.
II. Description of the Related Art
Numerous umbrellas have been provided in the prior art that consist of an umbrella that is connected to a fan. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,349,975 (1994) issued to Valdner teaches a small fan under the canopy of an umbrella that served to exchange the hot air under the canopy with cool air. U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,711 issued to Mueller in 1992 teaches a small fan mounted beneath the canopy to provide a cooling breeze to those underneath the canopy, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,007,811 (1991) to Hopkins teaches a ceiling type fan mounted underneath a canopy, for providing a cooling breeze to those underneath it. In each of these devices, the fan was treated as an accessory to an already existing umbrella. Other umbrellas or canopies such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,557 to Apple (1991) attempted to reduce the forces applied to canopy umbrellas by allowing the canopy to rotate freely in the wind. The present invention provides several advantages over the prior art. One advantage in contrast to other devices, is that the present invention incorporates rotating a canopy comprised of segmented petals to produce air flow. This air flow acts to push stale hot air from underneath the canopy or umbrella as well as provide a cooling breeze. A further advantage is given by the operation of the segmented petals in reverse which acts to draw the stale hot air from underneath the canopy and force it out the top. A further advantage is given in that by rotating the umbrella canopy to produce the breeze, the number of parts needed to manufacture the invention is reduced. Another advantage is that by using the segmented petals as the blades of a fan, there is nothing additional to add to or mount on the umbrella. A further advantage is that the larger surface area that is being rotated contributes to the production of more air flow per rotation. Another advantage is that by having more air flow produced by the larger surface area, the invention is more efficient in comparison to a smaller fan which would have to make many more revolutions to produce a similar air flow volume. Another advantage is that by having an air flow present, the present invention has the direct effect of deterring flying insects that act as an irritant to people sitting under the canopy. The present invention is also weather resistant and can be left outdoors. The segmented petals of the present invention provide another advantage over the prior art in that wind loading is reduced on the invention as a whole by allowing for some air flow between the petals themselves. This reduced wind loading results in the advantage of being more resistant to tipping due to wind forces. This advantage is accentuated by the presence of the base plate which acts as a weighted anchor for the present invention. A further advantage is that the present invention does not necessarily have to have electrical current present to power the rotating canopy's petals, in a preferred embodiment, the power for rotation is supplied by solar panels. In another preferred embodiment, the power for rotation is supplied by a foot crank which can be used to wind up a mechanism to rotate the canopy's drive shaft.